Meet the Team: Senior Designer Amy

Meet Amy👋

Amy is one of our Senior Designers here at Woodchip & Magnolia. 

With a degree in surface pattern design, Amy is inspired by everything from nature and history to street fashion when it comes to her designs and describes her favourite Woodchip & Magnolia designs as Onism, Arcadia and Broadhead Forest.
 
What path did you take to land the role of Senior Designer at Woodchip & Magnolia?

I grew up in a small town on the coast in northwest Cumbria and there wasn’t a lot on offer for young people who were more creative. Throughout school I was always more creative than I was academic and anything that was more practical like art, design & technology and music were my favourite kind of lessons (I played the flute for years and even got my exams!). I very quickly knew I wanted to combine art and design but had no idea what was on offer, that’s when I found the Textiles and Surface Design degree which I studied for 3 years, specialising in print for my final 2 years. I loved university and wish I could go back and do it all again, this time applying all the knowledge I have now!

After graduating I had various placements with freelancers and a leading bedding brand in Manchester which consisted of making 60+ cups of tea and coffee a day for client meetings, archiving artwork, dressing showrooms and putting colour and trend boards together. 

I worked hard and it paid off as I then got a permanent role with a leading textile manufacturing brand called Edinburgh Weavers. I began here in 2011, working mainly in trade, hotels, and healthcare and was very lucky to have been able to travel to various beautiful places with this job. I also oversaw the design department; putting collections together, working to client briefs and managing a small team.

I had always admired Woodchip & Magnolia’s creativity and braveness, so when I saw the job advertised on Instagram, I thought it looked perfect for me and where I wanted to be in that point in my career. I went for a chat very soon after I I joined the W&M family.

What do you love about your job?

My favourite thing about working here is probably the people. We are a great team and everyone is so lovely! I also love the diversity of my job - I’ve learnt so much since being here; wallpaper was very new to me initially but I love learning new things, so the challenge has been fun.

Do you have a favourite Woodchip & Magnolia design?
I love the Onism design because it reminds me of the first Chinese wallpapers from the late 17th century. I actually designed this one and was inspired by the traditional chinoiserie style, I wanted to capture the typically warn and metallic texture in the ground to give it that traditional yet expensive feel and create colours that were bold, rich and luxurious. It seems to be a hit with the W&M customers so far!